Change the Course
by Opinionated Asmodeus
Summary: They were all gone, taken by Fleet Admiral Sakazuki and his subordinates. They were all gone, but Coby, through a selfless sacrifice, gave him a chance to save them. All of them.


Smoke and ash filled the air, which was tainted by the stench of burning bodies. The smell was absolutely sickening, but it didn't seem to faze Sakazuki or Borsalino in the slightest and he couldn't help but wonder how they could stomach it and the carnage they had created. Marines and Pirates alike fell victim to the attacks the Fleet Admiral and the Admiral made, showing just how far they would go to see _their_ Justice carried out.

"LUFFY!" Nami's scream was piercing as she failed to dodge consecutive attacks from Borsalino and Sakazuki, the latter's magma quickly devouring her.

He fought as ferociously as he was able to, but nothing worked, and it was like their separation all over again, only this time it was absolute. "NAMI! NO!" He tried to make it over to where she had been but Borsalino blocked him with a cruel smile. "GET OUT OF MY WAY!"

"Oh?" Borsalino drawled out, hands in his pockets as he baited the pirate captain. "And ruin all of the fun?"

"MOVE DAMNIT!" He threw out a Jet Pistol at the Admiral, only for it to be easily dodged. A beam of light from Borsalino had him leaping up, only to receive a Haki-imbued kicked to the gut. He landed hard on the ground several feet back and coughed out a bit of blood.

"You bastard!" Zoro tried to get away from Mihawk to aid him, but his former mentor blocked his path and attacked the younger swordsman with his kokuto, Yoru.

"Your fight is with me, Roronoa Zoro." Mihawk's stare was merciless and he took advantage of Zoro's distraction, as well as his blindside, to deal a devastating blow. Yoru easily sliced through his former apprentice's left arm.

Blood sprayed from the wound in copious amounts and the younger swordsman found himself at quite a disadvantage, especially with the rate he was losing his blood. He gripped Wado Ichimonji's hilt with his teeth tighter and switched his hold on Shuusui while his vision began to swim. It was no good, he was dying and Chopper had already perished to Sakazuki's magma. The doctor had been among the first, with Franky, Usopp and then Nami.

"I had such high hopes for you, but you are like all the other insignificant insects I have crushed after all." Mihawk spun out of Shuusui's reach, ducked beneath Wado Ichimonji and twisted slightly to run Zoro through with Yoru. He took in the look of absolute desperation in his former apprentice's eyes, which was quickly followed by sorrow and…success? Mihawk blinked as he felt pain blossoming in his own chest and looked down to find another Shuusui embedded there. _What?_ The _original_ Shuusui and the arm holding it vanished, as if they had been an illusion.

"I'm sorry, Luffy…" Zoro stumbled back, Shuusui released from his grip and Wado Ichimonji falling from his mouth. He slid off of Yoru, which was still in Mihawk's grasp, and fell to the ground where he remained motionless.

"ZORO!" Sanji was the one to yell out his name, but it was to no avail. The swordsman was already dead, and the rest of their Nakama were being slaughtered.

Luffy could only watch as Robin, Brook and Sanji all were overcome by Sakazuki, leaving only a battered Jinbe and himself behind. "No… Everyone… NO!" Tears were running down his cheeks as their bodies vanished, Sakazuki's cruel laugh echoing in his ears. He knelt there, his body trembling and the taste of blood in his mouth, as Borsalino backed away from him and Sakazuki slowly approached.

"No one can save you now, you scum." Sakazuki chortled as he let his right fist turn into molten lava, victory already in his eyes. "Your brothers are dead. Your father is dead. All of your friends are dead, and so is your crew. Nobody will save you now." He flung a bowling ball sized glob of magma at Jinbe, the Fishman having been struggling to get up.

Luffy sobbed as he sensed the life leave the last of his Nakama, his entire world shattered because of this one man. How someone could have so much hatred in them…

"Luffy!"

Arms wrapped around him and a strange look came over Sakazuki's face before pure rage settled onto it. Before the Fleet Admiral could do anything though, a weird feeling came over the pirate and he blinked as everything started to grow distorted. The image of Sakazuki was warping and bending before disappearing completely. In fact, everything around them, the island they had been on, all of it was gone. Everything was dark, pitch black if he could even begin to describe it, but he could still feel the pain of his injuries as well as the arms wrapped around him. "Who?"

"I'm… I'm so sorry, Luffy. I don't have a good grasp on these powers, so I don't know where they'll take us, or when." A familiar voice spoke up softly and the arms tightened slightly. "I think I pulled us out of there too quickly…"

"C-coby?! Is that you Coby?" Luffy struggled to turn around in his Marine friend's grasp, but the hold was too tight on him and for some reason he felt like he wasn't able to move. Something warm and wet was pooling under him, and for once he hoped it wasn't what he thought it was.

"Y-yeah. It's me, Luffy." Coby's voice started to sound weak, just as a forest appeared around them. "I'm really sorry. I wish I could have done more for you. Instead, this is the best I can do."

The arms went slack around him and he could finally move. Turning around, Luffy's gaze widened as he took in the sight of the first friend he had made on the seas. Bile threatened to come up as he looked down at where Coby's legs should be, instead they were missing. Everything from the Marine's navel down were missing, leaving his entrails and organs to spill out. "Coby! No! Coby!" His tears fell faster as he gathered what remained of his friend into his arms, holding him close.

"I'm really glad I met you, Luffy. You're my best friend." Coby smiled, though his expression was pained, then closed his eyes and slipped away.

"COBY!"

-CtC-

Hours passed before he finally moved, his friend cold and stiff with rigor mortis, and began mindlessly digging a hole with his hands. That took him several hours more, his pace never once slowing down, until the hole was large enough and deep enough.

Ever so gently, he wrapped Coby's body up in the coat he had worn and carried him down into the grave. Luffy placed him down with care then took the worn straw hat that Shanks had given to him and placed it on his friend's chest. "You deserve this more than I do, Coby." With that he climbed out of the hole and began filling it back up. Once the grave was filled, he found a large stone that was suitable and placed it at the head of the grave to mark it.

With that taken care of, he knelt there for a few minutes, his hand on top of the stone and his head bowed. "I don't know what you did, or where I am, but I won't let your death or theirs' be in vain." His words were spoken in a low tone, his hand balling into a fist. "I'll make sure that **bastard** pays, for everything."

Luffy stood up and finally took in his surroundings, the area seeming familiar to him. Blinking, he frowned and wandered through the forest. It was starting to grow dark, but it didn't matter any as he came out upon a familiar path. Walking along the path, he stared at an all too familiar village in the distance. _Fuusha… It's Fuusha._ So that took care of the where. He was confused by what Coby had meant when he had said when though. _When…_ What could that possibly mean?

Walking down to the village, he frowned as he noticed a kid skulking near the perimeter. The kid had wild black hair and wore a white shirt and blue shorts. That was all he could make out from observing the kid's back. "Oi. You there," he called out, and the kid jumped slightly.

"H-hai?" The kid turned around, tears in his eyes and snot dripping from his nose which he tried to rub away.

Luffy had opened his mouth, a question poised on the tip of his tongue, which instead died away at the sight of his younger self. The kid blinked and stared up at him, confusion, fear and increasing worry on his face. The older Luffy blinked and looked down at himself. He was a dirty, bloody mess and more than likely looked a fright. "I won't hurt you. I promise," he stated softly and knelt down.

"You won't hurt me?" The child's eyes were large and pleading, but he remained wary and kept his distance. He rubbed at his nose again, sniffling as more snot dripped out.

"I won't." Luffy held both hands palms up to show that he was unarmed, though in reality his hands were his weapons. "What are you doing out here?"

The kid shifted around nervously, his head bowing as he mumbled out an answer.

Luffy blinked and then frowned, trying to wrack his brain to locate this particular memory. He didn't recall ever meeting anyone outside of Fuusha, especially not himself, but he was obviously in the past. Or was he? "I didn't catch that."

The younger Luffy flushed a little and looked up at him, hands now hidden behind his back. "I was running away so my Grandpa couldn't find me."

Ah… It was that time. Nope. Definitely hadn't met himself, or anyone else. Well, apart from Makino, who had come looking for him.

"Luffy!" Speak of the devil.

Thinking quickly, he held a finger up to his lips then leapt up onto the roof of the closest house. The kid stared after him in awe before running off towards Makino. Sighing, he followed via the rooftops and watched as his old caregiver scolded the younger Luffy before wiping his face clean and ushering him into her home.

-CtC-

He waited until Makino had gone to sleep before he snuck into her home. It was relatively easy, since he still knew the place like the back of his hand, and locating the kid was even easier. _He_ was still awake, sitting patiently on his bed with his legs dangling over the side.

"Who are you?" The younger Luffy questioned, his voice soft.

He frowned, unsure of what he should tell his younger self, if anything at all. Saying nothing would undoubtedly leave things to play out as they had from the time he was from. He couldn't go through that all over again, and he certainly didn't want Coby sacrificing himself again either with whatever strange power he had acquired. _Most likely a devil fruit power._ And he was in the past, so it was one that could manipulate time. "I'm you, from the future."

Younger Luffy blinked at him then took in his appearance again. Blood-stained, dirty and scarred, yet the resemblance was there. Stars immediately appeared in his eyes and he jumped down from the bed to come closer. "Really!"

"Shh! Makino-san is asleep." The pirate whispered before nodding. He smiled faintly, sadness in his eyes, as the child covered his mouth and flushed in embarrassment.

"Sorry," the boy mumbled from behind his hands, then slowly let them drop. "What happened?"

"I…" The pirate paused and looked away, unable to tell his younger self what he had gone through earlier that day. "A lot of bad stuff."

The younger Luffy blinked then cocked his head to one side. "Is that why you came back? To keep the bad stuff from happening?" He moved closer, no longer afraid of his older self.

"I… Yes. I want to keep the bad stuff from happening." _All of it._ He added silently to himself. Looking back to the kid, he was surprised to find him so close, close enough that they bumped heads. As soon as they made contact with each other everything went dark for the both of them.


End file.
